AK- must or bust?

[athena's mommy]

I am new so forgive me if this has already been asked. We are going in Dec. We have been to WDW many times, but we have always skipped the AK. Now my DH wants to go this year because of our daughter who will be 13 months at the time. I am still on the fence. We have been to some of the best zoos in the world and I think we will be disappointed with AK. He also wants to eat at Flame Tree BBQ. So what is everyone's opinion on the AK. Should we do? Is it a full day thing, half day etc? Is there anything (besides the animals) to entertain my daughter?
Thanks alot!

 

[WDWorBUST]

There are many different opinions on this park but my DH and I love Animal Kingdom. It is not a zoo. Yes they have animals but it's so much more than a zoo. It's hard to explain - so all I can really say is we love it and we usually spend at least a full day there.

 

[Pammy_from_WI]

AK is sort of like a zoo, but very different. It won't be like any zoo you've ever visited!!!

We too were not sure if we'd like AK, but it ended up being one of our favs. Your 13 month old will love it!! There are a lot of things for little ones. Some of the rides will be out of the question, but you and your hubby can do baby swaps to see them, worked great for us. Plenty of things for the little one to do while mom and dad are doing the baby swap. Example the dino dig site is a nice place for her to play and close to the Dino ride. Mom and hang around playing with her and dad can go ride, then when dad is done, he plays and mom rides. Worked out very nicely for us.

She'll probably love the shows, aome of Disney's best shows are here. Plus there is character stations.

We got to AK at opening and we're done with the park at about 2pm. It isn't a whole day park, but you could easily spend a day there is you lingered over the animals and such.

As for food at the AK, I think it was some of the best counter service food in all of WDW.

Be sure and put lots of sunblock on her though and keep reapplying. AK is hotter then the other parks for some reason. Keep her drinking too. My advice would be to go and see if you like AK, you can always leave and go someplace else if you don't like it, but with a little one in tow, I think you will!!!

Pammy

 

[Jon99]

The first 3 times we went we basically hit the big attractions, were done by noon and thought "its ok, but not great"... Then on our last trip we spent the entire day there, doing a lot of the little things, taking our time walking thru the stores and paths and at the end of the trip we both agreed it was our favorite day of the week...

 

[DISNEYFAMILYOFFOUR]

I agree with the above posts--give it a try. We always start the day there with an 8:10 PS for the charactor breakfast. The first time we went, my DD was 7 months old. She really enjoyed the lion king show.

But, please be aware that this park is the hardest of them all on walking. You have to cross little bridges to get to each section that can take a toll on a long, hot day. However, everyone should go to AK at least once. We usually finish up around 4:00 p.m. to head back to the hotel for some swimming.

Have fun!!!

 

[WDWorBUST]

Oh...I forgot. My DH absolutely loved the food at the Flame Tree Barbeque and I have to agree - it was really good!

 

[Eljay]

AK is a unique & wonderful place. I'm glad you're going in Dec., the weather will be much better than the hotter months. I never recommend that people go when it's hot there since it's really unbearable in the AK because of the heavy vegitation. There is no breeze to cool you off.
If you haven't settled on a resort yet, try the AK Lodge to complete your experience. In my opinion, it's the most magnificent of all the resorts, but many people don't like that it's so far from everything else on the WDW property. They do have their own busses not shared with any other resort though, that whisk you everywhere.

 

[admiral nelson]

It was nice to see once, but when you've seen everything, and ridden everything once...eh I dunno. I'm still going for half a day on my upcoming trip, but I wouldn't be too sad if we skipped it.

I agree with the comment about it being a zoo. Kinda a zoo on steriods. I like the safari ride, that's always fun. IMHO, the rapid ride stinks totally. Compared to Popeye and Bluto's at IOA, it doesn't come remotely close. They ruined Dinosaur with that make over. I enjoy the little nature walkthrough, and Tought To Be A Bug. Beyond that, I don't even think there is anything else.

 

[Geoff_M]

Of the four parks, AK is our least favorite... but that doesn't make it bad. If the crowds are light we can what we want to do in 1/2 a day. Last time we spent 1/2 a day at MGM and the other 1/2 at AK and were content will what we did in both parks.

Things we really like about AK:

The Safari ride
Tough To Be A Bug
Festival Of The Lion King
Dinosaur
Bone Yard
Jammin' Jingle Parade

Things we could take or leave:
Rafiki's Planet Watch/Conservation Station (any decent local zoo or nature center will do nicely instead)
Primarl Whirl/Tricerotops Spin... I just don't get into the theme and the rides are low entertainment.
Kali River Rapids... We usually go during cooler weather and don't want to get hypothermic.

Things we haven't done:
Tarzan... We tried once but it was cancelled due to cold weather (really).
Nature Trails... We have a nice zoo near us that used Disney consultants to build a large walk-thru African veldt and these trails haven't seemed like a good use of our time.

So the bottom line is, give it a try and see what you think, but I'd be prepared for a "Plan B" later in the day if decide that you've seen enough of AK.

 

[BethC1952]

It depends on what you're looking for. If all you want to do is rides and major attractions, you can probably skip it. If, like me, you love animals and love to soak up atmosphere, it's definitely a "don't miss". It's certainly not like any zoo I've ever seen, and the CM's there are very well informed and were able to answer all of my questions about the animals. I had lots of questions about the meerkats. I'd never seen a colony of them before, and they're really fascinating animals.

The weather in December should be wonderful. The first time we went was in May, 2001, and it was really hot. Last December the weather was perfect (in fact, it was the only nicest day out of our entire trip, even though it rained late in the day).

I love walking through the Maharajah's Jungle Trek. It really gives me the feeling of walking through a garden in India (I guess...I've never actually done that!) and the tigers are beautiful. We were lucky enough to be there when they were being fed. You can see some pictures here .

I can't wait to go back!

Beth

 

[natcam1996]

We like AK. I guess I see it as a theme park where the theme is animals and their environment. It's the "Disney difference" that makes it more special.

 

[pintrader]

I, like you have been to some of the best zoos in the world. So we are comparing apples to apples. It is so much more than the animals. If you go expecting a zoo, you will be disappointed. The animals here are limited to animals from certain regions.
When you first enter the park stroll slowly through the walkway. Look and listen for all the birds. They are gorgeous and it is so cool to see them with constraints.

The safari is not to be missed and is like nothing I've seen at the BEST zoos. The rides are great and Camp Minnie Mickey should be good for your little one.

Flaming Tree is my favorite place inside the park and Boma's at DAK Lodge is my favorite on property.

Post after you go and tell us what you thought please.

 

[mickeysaver]

First things first....AK is NOT a zoo.

I love the park. I was so upset with how little we were able to do there because I had read so many times on the internet that AK was a half day park. By the time we got around to going to AK, it was too late in the week to allow for any more time to be spent there. The environment is just amazing. The animals are beautiful. There was so much to see and do there. We found so many characters there and even had the pleasure of conversing with a talking palm tree, watching this very cute little guy in a Buzz outfit chasing after a talking trash can, and finally we got to see Devine. There are so many parts of the park we didn't even get to see, but what we did see, we absolutely loved. I can't wait to go back. We have 2 days planned to spend there in December. For us, it's a must do. Mickey

 

[PatriciaH]

I LOVE AK. We have 2 days scheduled for our August trip. I think Epcot is hotter with all the cement reflecting the sun back up at you. I have been to the Bronx Zoo (many times), Central Park Zoo, San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park, Baltimore Zoo, St. Louis Zoo, Miami Zoo (and more) and trust me AK is not a zoo! The settings the animals are in are beautiful. If you are not into animals and are only doing rides and shows, you can do it in a day. We love animals and spend a lot of time there just watching them!

 

[crisi]

Another AK fan here.

Our least favorite park is MGM. We could skip that - especially with the kids in tow. But AK is a big deal for us. We generally book two "mornings" to be out of there by 1:00 or 2:00. My kids were 2 1/2 and 3 1/2 and really enjoyed it.

With a 13 month old, it probably won't make too much difference. At that age, they are still fairly content with whatever, as long as you are interacting with them and there is something to watch. 13 months was just about the time my kids began understanding "zoo" and that they were supposed to look at the animals - but maybe mine are particularly stupid

 

[Geoff_M]

While it's certainly true that AK, as a whole, is not a zoo... certain parts of it certainly are. Though lacking many of the Disney touches, many, many zoos are incorporating natural habitat displays like AK. AK was not the first to use such a methodology but, arguably, have taken it to a higher level than other zoological parks. We have felt in past visits that, at ~$50 per day per family member, we are better off watching giraffes graze, primates move from tree to tree, and tigers prowel around their rock outcropping homes in other natural habitat displays near our homes for a small fraction of the price.

This isn't to say that everyone should feel like we do, that's just our opinion. We know people that LOVE AK and will spend an full day there.... More power to them. If you're looking for a quiter time than you will find at MK, than meandering the trails are probably the ticket for you.

But there's no denying that AK is a zoological park at its core with a number of extras (I gotta confess, there's no "Primal Whirl" at our local zoo!) in Disney wrapping.

 

[athena's mommy]

Wow! Thanks for all the responses. Seems most of you love AK, so I think we will give it a try. We were going to spend the evening at MGM to eat and catch Fantasmic and were looking for something to do that morning and afternoon. Since we have the park hopper pass, we might as well swing over to AK. Thanks for all the great replys and valuable info!

 

[Planogirl]

I was going to suggest just giving the park a try one morning just to see what you think. We're also zoo fans and we like Animal Kingdom for a little while during each trip. I particularly enjoy the Maharajah Jungle Trek because of the setting and the tigers. Your little one would probably enjoy the Safari and the Festival of the Lion King too assuming that it's open when you go.

 

[kdibattista]

We personally LOVE Animal Kingdom and tend to go a few different times during the week... normally for a few hours at a time.

 

[il-gander]

We just got back from our first trip to WDW, and hit all 4 parks. We went to Animal Kingdom first because my kids love animals and I had read here on the boards that so many people considered it a "half-day" park. We really loved it, and it was my DH's favorite of all 4 parks!

I wouldn't agree that it is a half-day park, we were there from open until they kicked us out at close, and did not see nearly everything. We went on Kilimanjaro Safaris, Kali River Rapids (twice), Primeval Whirl, Triceratops Spin, and saw It's Tough to be a Bug!. We did not ride Dinosaur (DDs too young) or get to any of the great shows, but we did see the parade. We used Fastpass and did not wait longer than 15 minutes for any attraction. We spent a fair amount of time wandering the trails, etc. - it definitely is a place to slow down a bit and stop and see the details. It took us all day to do the above.

I had read here and heard that AK is the hottest park, but I don't agree now. We thought AK did a much better job with its layout and keeping you shaded in lines and such than any of the other 3 parks, and especially better than MK. We even left our second day at MK in the afternoon to park hop over to AK and ride the River Rapids again to cool down - VERY hot there last week!